Erie in the News
For more information about Erie Family Health Center, please contact Valerie Comprelli at 312.432.7463 or vcomprelli@eriefamilyhealth.org
March 2008 Un Buen Doctor
Erie Celebrates Grand Opening of New Humboldt Park Oral Health Center
Erie Family Health Center will celebrate its 50th anniversary with the grand opening of the first community oral health clinic in Humboldt Park on March 6; the clinic expects to provide 3,600 visits to uninsured or underserved patients in its first year.
written by Eduardo Alegría
translated by Rachel Dziallo
This grand opening will be a true celebration, as the dental center has been long awaited by the local Puerto Rican community. The guest of honor is State Representative Cynthia Soto, who helped Erie Family Health Center obtain $650,000 from the Illinois Department of Public Health to open the dental center.
The day of the grand opening (March 6, 2008) will be one of many emotions, especially since the project has long been a goal of Erie Family Health Center. With the support of Representative Soto and other contributions, like that of the Illinois Children’s Healthcare Foundation, the dream of a quality community oral health clinic has been realized.
Since health centers financed by Cook County and the City of Chicago are limited in their ability to open their services to everyone, this dental clinic hopes to help those who are missed by the system, and give them quality health care.
Many studies have revealed that Hispanic children in Illinois have the lowest cavity-free rate. Therefore, the clinic will aim to serve low-income, Hispanic children. Additionally, Erie’s Oral Health Needs Assessment conducted in 2007 showed that 82% of pregnant women served by Erie had cavities, with an average of 6 cavities each. Therefore, pregnant women will be the second focus of the clinic.
Erie Dental Health Center in Humboldt Park will offer a very important service, given that only 25% of dentists in Illinois accept Medicaid as a form of payment. There is a scarcity of dental health clinics in the health care safety net. In fact, only four Chicago Department of Public Health dentists offer services to uninsured or underserved patients.
Furthermore, 19% of adults in Chicago have not seen a dentist in over a year, which inevitably takes a toll on medical visits.
“Erie is committed to expanding access to quality oral health care for the underserved. Erie’s new dental center in Humboldt Park will change the lives of our patients—from the child who misses school due to pain caused by an untreated cavity, to the pregnant woman whose gums will not stop bleeding. This new dental center will stabilize the oral health of patients and improve their quality of life,” said Lee Francis, MD, MPH, President and CEO of Erie Family Health Center.
Erie Family Health Center was founded in 1957 by doctors from Northwestern Memorial Hospital. The sixteen members of their Board of Directors include nine community residents, who are also patients of Erie.
To see the full article in Spanish, go to:
http://www.unbuendoctor.com/detalle_articulos.asp?idenfermedad=624&tipo=4